Gates of Serenity
by Lord Lycaon
Summary: When a mysterious individual causes a rift between two worlds through the use of an ancient, lost alchemical art, Naruto Uzumaki is pulled into Amestris, losing his arm in the process. Now, the young jinchuriki must cooperate with the Fullmetal Alchemist Edward Elric in order to stop a dangerous plot that could end up destroying both their worlds.
1. Chapter 1

**This story is actually the first challenge that I've been given so far. You can all thank my buddy BladeOfThePoet for it, because I had given him a challenge (a crossover between Bleach and Zelda: Skyward Sword) and he accepted. Therefore, the Law of Equivalent Exchange demanded satisfaction. Here you go!**

-o-

The rain cascaded outside his lair as it always had. The dark clouds groaned with thunder whenever flashes of lightning appeared. It may have been a dreary place, and it definitely wasn't the most secure of the ninja villages, but it was still his home. And he loved his home.

"Pain," said a woman's voice. The orange-haired man turned from his view of the Village Hidden in the Rain and faced a blue-haired woman who had a paper rose in her hair.

"What is it, Konan?" Pain asked.

"There is a stranger at the front door asking to speak with you," Konan stated emotionlessly. "He refuses to identify himself until you see him in person."

Pain quietly thought it over. It was doubtful that anyone could challenge him. Maybe an old enemy had returned to try and somehow make peace. Maybe a current, unknown enemy wanted to make a deal. He couldn't be sure of anything right now. At least not until he spoke with the stranger. He nodded.

"Bring him up here," he ordered. Konan bowed and disappeared in a flurry of living paper. Pain waited for a few moments before his partner returned with the visitor.

The man had snow-white hair and different colored eyes: one was sky blue and the other was sea green. His skin was deathly pale, on par with Orochimaru. The stranger wore black kimono, the kind that one would often wear to a funeral. His face held no emotion.

"Speak your peace stranger," Pain said in a commanding tone. "Who are you and what do you want?"

The silver-haired man bowed respectfully. "Greetings, Pain. I have heard many a tale regarding your prowess." The man's voice was smooth as silk and cold as ice. "My name is Serenitas. I am here to try and strike a deal with you. You see, I know of your hunt for the Tailed Beasts. I know of a way to make your search for the most powerful of them much easier."

This made Pain raise an eyebrow. "And what method would that be?"

The look in Serenitas's eyes very nearly displayed satisfaction, but it quickly disappeared. "Tell me, Pain: have you ever heard of alchemy?"

"The science of turning one material into another," Pain stated simply. "I've heard of it. It's a dead field. It was proven physically impossible decades ago."

That actually made Serenitas chuckle. "Your knowledge of the subject is limited then. Alchemy is not really intended for things such as what you described. True, it can change an object's appearance, but it cannot change its mass or atomic structure in any way. The most complex alchemy can even be used for interdimensional travel. If you are successful, you will be able to send any of your followers to any place in the world instantly."

Pain then thought it over seriously. "And then we would only have to track down a jinchuriki, then send someone over to capture them."

"Precisely," Serenitas confirmed.

"And what would you want in return for the aid of the Akatsuki?"

"A path towards true peace." Serenitas said it with no emotion in his voice. "I seek to bring eternal peace for all things."

Pain studied the strange man. This Serenitas character seemed odd. Then again, the orange-haired man was surrounded by a lot of strange individuals these days. He at least seemed honest enough. He soon came to a decision.

"Very well," Pain agreed. "We shall work towards a greater future together."

-o-

Edward Elric stretched tiredly as he woke up from his nap on the train. He scratched his head and looked to his right. Winry was still fast asleep. He let a small smile form on his face. She looked kind of sweet when she wasn't beating him half to death with her favorite wrench.

"Brother," said the voice of child. Ed face a huge suit of armor whose eyeholes were glowing blood red. "You're awake."

"Yeah," Ed replied to his younger brother. He looked out the window and watched as the nighttime scenery rushed by. "We should be at Rush Valley soon. Then we'll be one train ride away from Dublith and…" He shuddered.

"I know," Alphonse said with a shudder of his own, making a few clanking noises. "Then we'll have to face our teacher again."

"On the bright side," Ed said with a small grin. "We might get info about the Philosopher's Stone. I'm sure it'll be well… worth… it." As the words escaped his mouth, he slowly began to realize that their teacher would more than likely have killed them in some horrific, nightmarish way by the time they could ask about anything. "We're going to die."

"Yeah," Al replied simply.

After several quiet moments, Ed said, "You know, Al, I've a weird feeling."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know," he said somewhat regretfully. As an alchemist, he hated knowing that there was something that he didn't know. "I just have this feeling in my gut that something bad is coming our way."

"Something bad is always coming our way," Al pointed out. "In fact, we're usually the ones that are coming trouble's way."

Ed laughed at that. "Yeah, I guess you're right. But still…" He went quiet again. "My gut's never led me astray before." The rest of the night was silent, save for the constant rocking of the train as it sped down the tracks.


	2. Chapter 2

**Okay, I should clear something up really quick. In the Naruto universe, this story takes place sometime after Hidan and Kakuzu are defeated, but before (spoiler alert for those of you who've been living under a rock) Sasuke betrays Orochimaru. Just wanted to clear that up. Enjoy!**

-o-

The Leaf Village was calm and peaceful as ever. People went about their daily lives, running errands, mingling, and other ordinary things. It was beautiful day to boot. The sun was smiling down brightly at the land, and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. Birds flew by, singing their lovely songs. The ninja of the village remained alert, but aloof.

"NARUTO, YOU IDIOT!"

Except for two.

"Sakura, I'm sorry!" the blond, orange-clad ninja shouted in apology. The pink-haired kunoichi was chasing him all around the village, while Sai simply stood in the background, smiling.

Kakashi appeared next to the young ANBU and watched as Sakura sprinted to catch the fleeing Naruto. "Do I even want to know?" he asked Sai.

"Naruto accidentally went into the women's hot springs," Sai explained. "Unfortunately, Sakura just happened to be there." The pale young man was still smiling creepily. Eventually, Sakura managed to grab Naruto and force him into a headlock.

Barely able to breathe, Naruto said, "S-Sakura… I'm… sorry…"

"Apologize in hell, you dumbass!" the pinkette replied furiously as she began mercilessly beating on the helpless blond. When the dust finally settled, Sakura stormed away, muttering something about how all but one blond that she knew were all complete idiots. Naruto was lying in a crater, barely conscious and twitching in pain.

Kakashi and Sai looked down at the orange-clad ninja in the hole in the ground. "Would you like some help out of that ditch, Naruto?" Kakashi asked, mostly out of curiosity about how his student might reply.

"No," Naruto said in a daze. "I'll just lie here for a while." He immediately blacked out.

Kakashi chuckled lightly. "Ah, young love," he said sarcastically. "Come on, Sai. Let's get the poor idiot to the hospital before those wounds of his become permanent."

Sai nodded, and they slid down into the crater and picked up the injured teen, then carried him off to be treated.

-o-

In an Akatsuki hideout, every current member of the organization was gathered together. Even Pain's other incarnations were there. The lead Pain turned his head and watched each of his followers. There was Konan and Zetsu, of course, Itachi, Kisame, the explosives-happy Deidara, and Tobi. Serenitas had said that they all had to arrive in person for this to work. All of them, plus their strange guest, stood around a circle with an incredibly intricate design. The sheer number of triangles, squares, and other shapes boggled the Akatsuki leader's mind. Serenitas had drawn the whole thing without referring to any kind of text. The stranger now stood in the center of the circle.

"Is everybody in position?" Serenitas asked.

"Of course… hmm," Deidara replied.

"I am ready," Itachi stated.

"Good to go," Kisame confirmed.

"I'm ready!" Tobi exclaimed excitedly.

Konan and Zetsu simply nodded, as did the six Pains. Serenitas nodded as well and crouched down. He placed one hand palm-down in the circle's exact center. He raised his other hand into a ninja hand sign.

"I beseech thee, God," the silver-haired man replied. "Answer my prayer, and show me the Truth forged by thy omnipotent hands. Show the manifestation of thy word and unlock the path to the ultimate identity of all things."

The circle suddenly started glowing in an eerie green light. The members of the Akatsuki watched patiently as the light gradually grew brighter. Though his face hid it, Pain was eager to see the results of this alliance. With any luck, they might even get what they need ahead of schedule. Very soon, the world will finally be at peace.

He was brought out of his musing by the sound of pained screams. His eyes widened when he saw that the other members of the Akatsuki were now wrapped in sickly green tendrils of energy. His Rinnegan allowed him to clearly see that their chakra was being forcibly drained from their bodies. Before he could react, he and his other incarnations were suffering the same fate.

Through the agony, Pain managed to glare furiously at Serenitas. "What have you done?"

Serenitas glanced over at Pain, giving the orange-haired man the same kind of look that one would give an insect. "I may have failed to inform you of the price that my alchemy demands. It is the Law of Equivalent Exchange. In order to acquire something, something of equal value must be given. In order to activate this circle, I required seven human sacrifices, minimum. Your five extra bodies will only help me."

Inside Tobi's mind, Madara Uchiha was seething with rage. How dare this upstart try to kill him? He wanted nothing more at the moment than to destroy this pale-skinned bastard, to make him feel the same pain that he was feeling right now. but he couldn't move. The wave of agony in his body forced him to scream in anguish rather than speak. Soon, the pain stopped. Darkness clouded his vision.

Serenitas stood calmly in the center of the circle, surrounded by corpses that had once been S-rank rogue ninja. He spread his arms out, the alchemical circle's green glow giving his pale skin a sinister appearance. "Do not fear, Akatsuki. Your sacrifice shall not be in vain. Soon, I shall create a world where no one needs to die any longer." He looked down at the glowing circle. "Now, there is one more thing to take care of." He raised a hand up into the air. "Light of Serenity! Find the one who carries the great fox within his very soul! Send him through the Gates!"

In response, a beam of sinister green power exploded forth, heading into the sky.

-o-

Naruto groaned as he ate. He was stuck with eating hospital food for about a week. He was thankful for his accelerated healing. Any longer than a week would be flat-out torture for him. But that didn't mean that he had to like eating in a hospital bed.

"Man," he said as he leaned back onto his pillow, wincing slightly when he felt a pain in his side. "This sucks!" Another shock of pain. He gripped his side on instinct. "Dammit. Sakura was really thorough this time."

He looked out the window, admiring the twilight of dusk. He loved this time of day. It was a time when the village was a bit quieter, and more peaceful. It always managed to put him somewhat at ease. The bright colors were all soothing to his mind. Orange, red, yellow, green, and… wait, green?

The blonde's eyes widened when he realized that that green light was gradually getting brighter. It seemed to be growing in size.

_WHAM!_

The light literally slammed into the window, cracking the glass and making the young shinobi yelp in surprise.

"That's not bigger!" he shouted as he scrambled out of his bed. But as he began to run for the door, a shock of pain shot through him. He lost his balance and stumbled, collapsing right on his face. The green light finally broke through the window and enveloped him.

When the doctors came to investigate the ruckus, Naruto Uzumaki had vanished.


	3. Chapter 3

He opened his eyes slowly. All he could see was empty whiteness. Everything was blank and lifeless. It was eerie. Naruto sat up and looked around. Everywhere he looked it was the same. But he had the strangest feeling that he wasn't alone. He stood up shakily, then noticed that all the injuries he had received from Sakura's feminine wrath were completely gone. That alone would've been enough to tell him that something was off.

"I see you're awake," a voice said behind him. He turned, ready to fight, but stopped when he saw the speaker. Before him was an entity of pure white surrounded by a black aura, which was pretty much the only thing that made it visible. It sat in relaxed position. "I was wondering when you'd come to."

"Who or what the hell are you?" Naruto asked.

"Oh, I'm so glad you asked!" the entity said as it threw its arms up excitedly. "I have a lot of names. I am all, I am one, I am the Universe, I am Truth, I am God, and…" It pointed right at the blond shinobi. "I am you."

Naruto looked at the being with a raised eyebrow. "You're all that, eh? You certainly seem to have a high opinion of yourself."

"I'm not surprised that you think that, Naruto Uzumaki," the being said as a mischievous grin formed on its featureless face.

Naruto's eyes widened. "How do you know my name?"

The being chuckled. "Like I said: I am all, and I am one. I know things about yourself that even you might not know. But that's beside the point here." The entity pointed at Naruto again. "The main subject that we should be talking about right now is right behind you."

Naruto raised an eyebrow and turned. Right behind him was a massive closed gate with bizarre images etched into it. Inside circles words written in a language that he couldn't understand. "That wasn't there before, was it?" he asked.

"Of course it was," the Truth said with a wicked grin. "You just weren't looking for it is all. Have fun in there."

"What do you mean by-?" Before he could finish his question, the gate opened, revealing an endless blackness. Suddenly, a bizarre eye opened vertically within the gate, and a swarm of shadowy hands exploded forward. Naruto panicked and tried to run, but the hands managed to catch him anyway. They dragged him through the gate. He screamed as the gate sealed shut.

"See you later," Truth said with a grin and a wave.

-o-

"Naruto is missing!?" Tsunade bellowed. Poor Sakura nodded as she suddenly felt very small. The Fifth Hokage ran a hand through her hair… then promptly destroyed her desk with a single punch. "How did he disappear?"

"Well, we don't know much," Sakura admitted, "but witnesses claim that a large green light entered his room. When we went in to investigate, he was already gone. Other than the broken window, there was no sign of any struggle." Tsunade began pacing, apparently thinking about the situation. "Do you think it might've been the Akatsuki?"

"They're a definite possibility," Tsunade said with a sigh, "but I doubt they would be capable of something like this." She turned to face her pupil again. "Have you sent out a search party yet?"

"Of course, milady," the pinkette replied with a nod. "Kakashi-sensei and Sai have already been informed of the situation as well."

Tsunade nodded. "Good. Send word to the ANBU, too. We have to find Naruto fast. If the Akatsuki really are behind this, then we don't have any time to lose." Sakura nodded and headed out. Tsunade sighed and looked out her window. "Naruto… where are you?"

-o-

He preferred the empty whiteness over this. This was terrifying. All around him, he saw thousands of images that he couldn't understand. Symbols and people flew past him. He felt as though his head was being flooded to overflowing with information that he couldn't comprehend. His brain felt as though it was going to explode. He closed his desperately, but he could still feel the abnormal knowledge ramming into his mind as if it had a battering ram.

Suddenly, he felt a pain in his right arm, like someone had just taken a hacksaw to it. Then, nothing. He felt the ground beneath him, which he had never more grateful for. He felt rain pouring down on his face. Slowly, he opened his eyes. He could see the night sky clouded by a rainstorm. Storm clouds had never been so welcome to him.

He could hear shouting now. He turned his head just enough to see house nearby. Somebody was running toward him. They looked big. That was all he could really tell before he blacked out.

-o-

Alphonse returned to Dominic's house with the unconscious teenager in his arms. They had no idea where he came from. Ed had been looking out a window when he saw someone lying on the ground outside. The timing was horrible, too. First, Dominic's daughter-in-law, Satella, was giving birth, and now they had passed out kid who came out of nowhere on their hands.

"How is he, Al?" Ed asked.

"He's out cold," Al replied with certainty. "Not only that, but look at the shape that he's in."

Ed examined the teen. He had blond hair and weird, whisker-like markings on his cheeks. He was also in a hospital, which was already odd enough. But the most shocking thing he saw was the fact that the guy's right arm was gone, replaced by a bloody stump.

"He's really bad shape," the Fullmetal Alchemist in a surprisingly worried tone. "I think all we can do for him right now is wait for Dominic to come back with that doctor. I just hope he's all right."

Al nodded helplessly and set the injured teen on a couch. He would have to apologize to Dominic and his family later for the bloodstains.

-o-

Serenitas watched emotionlessly through a floating crystal ball as the Elric brothers watched over the unconscious and bleeding Naruto Uzumaki. He hadn't intended for them to encounter each other so soon, but it didn't matter. He would just have to speed things up a little. His plan would still come to fruition.

"Soon," he muttered to himself. "Very soon, I shall create a world of complete harmony. The Gates of Serenity must be opened."


	4. Chapter 4

In a dark, eerie room, Orochimaru scowled at the report that was given to him. It had said that the entire Akatsuki was wiped out. Normally, news like this would've thrilled him, but this report had one major hole in its story: it stated that there was no apparent sign of struggle, not even the slightest droplet of blood. A group of S-rank rogues wouldn't have gone down so easily. How this was at all possible, he didn't know. And he hated not knowing.

"Kabuto," he said. Immediately, his right-hand man appeared from the darkness of the room.

"You called, Lord Orochimaru?" the silver-haired man asked with a sinister smile.

"Investigate these reports," the snakelike man said, handing Kabuto the file containing the intel. "I want to know exactly what happened to my former colleagues. I also would like to know if this has any chance of affecting my plans for the future."

"Of course, My Lord." Kabuto then disappeared in miniature tornado of wind and leaves.

Orochimaru sat in his throne, pondering what this might lead to. He soon found himself grinning. Though this might be an annoyance in the future, with Itachi dead, and therefore Sasuke's goals rendered meaningless, it might also prove to make things more interesting as well. He found himself looking forward to Kabuto's findings, whatever they may be.

-o-

Naruto felt something cold against his chest. He recognized the familiar circular shape of a stethoscope, that thing that doctors use to listen to heartbeats and stuff. That relieved him somewhat. He probably just fell asleep in the hospital. Maybe that "Truth" thing was just a dream. He tried not to think about that. All those bizarre images ran through his mind as though burned into his brain. He tried to stop thinking about those, too. He attempted to raise his right arm over his face to rub his eyes, but he couldn't feel his arm was it numb or something?

"He's finally waking up," muttered a man's voice. Naruto slowly opened his eyes, and was momentarily blinded by the overhead lights. When his eyes finally adjusted to the light, he saw a man wearing glasses sitting over him. "Hello, young man. How do you feel?"

"Like I've been through hell," Naruto replied with a joking grin.

The man who Naruto assumed was a doctor nodded. "That's only natural, considering your condition."

The blond shinobi chuckled in response. "I'll be fine in a few days. I heal fast."

"Faster than any patient I've ever met," the doctor admitted. "But I doubt you'll make a full recovery. Your arm is…" He trailed off.

"Relax, doc. It'll be fine in no time."

"You've lost an arm before?" the doctor inquired. Naruto was about to ask what he meant when it suddenly occurred to him. He couldn't feel his arm at all. He couldn't even move it. He slowly looked at his shoulder. His eyes widened.

"WHERE THE HELL IS MY ARM!?" Naruto yelled so loudly, people in the next town over heard it.

The doctor fell over on hindquarters when the blond screamed. The other people in the house came running into the room. The small crowd looked at Naruto with wide eyes as he ran all over the room in a panic.

"MY ARM IS GONE!?" he screamed again. "OH, MAN THIS IS BAD! SO VERY, VERY BAD! HOW WILL I BE ABLE TO FIGHT LIKE THIS!? I'M A NINJA FOR CRYING OUT LOUD! I NEED BOTH ARMS!"

"Will you calm down!?" shouted and blond kid with golden eyes. Naruto looked at the kid with a confused stare. "Listen, if you just sit down and stay calm, there are three people here who-"

"Who's the little kid?" Naruto asked. The golden-eyed kid immediately stopped talking.

"What was that?" the kid said in a dark tone, his hair hanging over his eyes, giving him a sinister appearance.

A huge guy wearing bulky armor stepped in front of Naruto, crouched down a little and whispered to Naruto, "Don't call my big brother little, please." The guy's voice was surprisingly childlike, as though he were still a kid himself. "He's pretty self-conscious about his height."

"Or lack thereof," Naruto said in his regular speaking voice. Almost immediately, the blond kid leaped over the armored guy, landed on Naruto, and proceeded to trap the now one-armed shinobi in an unbelievably powerful headlock.

"YOU THINK I'M A TINY, LITTLE SHRIMP!?" the kid exclaimed with a hilarious look of rage plastered on his face.

"I… didn't… say… that…" Naruto struggled to speak. He honestly thought he was going to die right there until he heard a loud WHAM and the kid's grip slackened completely.

"Ed, don't beat up someone with only one arm!" shouted a blur-eyed blond girl holding a blood-covered wrench in her hand. "You of all people should know better than that!" She then turned away from the bloody pulp that was once an angry blond boy and faced Naruto. "I'm sorry about my friend. He tends to get a little carried away. I'm Winry." She then motioned to the guy in armor. "That's Alphonse, and the guy I just persuaded to calm down was Edward. What's your name?"

"Naruto," he answered. "Naruto Uzumaki."

"Okay, Naruto," the armored guy, Alphonse, said. "Where are you from? Do you have any friends or family nearby?"

"I…" Naruto tried to answer, but for some reason, nothing really came to mind. "I don't really know."

"You have amnesia?" Edward asked after he spontaneously recovered from Winry's assault.

"I don't know if I can really call it that. I know where I'm from, but I can't think of the name. I can also remember a few names and a handful of faces, but I can't seem to put them together." He looked over at the doctor. "What would you call that, doc?"

"Hard to say," the doctor replied, "but it sounds like partial amnesia. And an odd case at that." He got up from his seat and collected his belongings. "I'm sorry, but I'm only certified for physical health. I've managed to stop the bleeding and wrap up the wound, but would recommend staying put for a few days before considering any prosthetics." With that said, he left the house.

Naruto looked at Winry. "What did mean by prosthetics?"

The girl's face suddenly broke out into a grin. "Tell me, Naruto, have you heard of automail?"

-o-

**Sorry for the lame ending, but I couldn't come up with anything better. Later guys.**


	5. Chapter 5

Tsunade tapped her foot impatiently behind her new desk. She had sent for that idiotic pervert an hour ago. She knew he was in the village now, so what was taking so long? If he was doing what she thought he was doing, he was sorely in for a world of hurt.

Soon enough, however, and ANBU walked into her office, dragging a drunken Jiraiya behind him. "Here he is, Lady Hokage," the ANBU said as he let go of Jiraiya.

Tsunade thanked and dismissed the ANBU, who bowed and left. Jiraiya stumbled onto his feet, clearly wasted. The Fifth Hokage sighed. He really was a lost cause.

"Hey, Tsunade!" Jiraiya said with a stupid, drunken grin. "You should've seen the new barmaid at that one place! She was the first woman I've ever seen whose body matches yours in sheer voluptuousness! She had a huge rack that I could swear was as big as yours!" That immediately earned him a chakra-infused punch to the face, causing him to fly through the wall with a scream of pain.

"Damn pervert," Tsunade muttered. She sighed and sat back in her chair, her hands folded under her chin. After several minutes, Jiraiya finally regained consciousness, and was deinking a cup of coffee that Tsunade had ordered for him. "Now that you're at least somewhat less plastered, let's get down to business. I take it you already know that Naruto has gone missing?"

"So I've heard," the Toad Sage replied as he took a sip of his coffee. "You sure he didn't just sneak out? You and Sakura of all people should know by now that he tends to do that."

"There were scorch marks on the floor in his room," Tsunade said as she took a folder from one end of her desk. She handed it to Jiraiya, who took hold of it and opened it. "The marks appear to be some sort of pattern. What do you think it could be?"

Jiraiya studied a picture of the markings with a seal master's eye. He could easily spot the pattern, but it was unlike any he had ever seen. Lots of circles and diamond shapes, and even what appeared to be words written in some foreign language. His eyes narrowed. "It's definitely strange," he commented. "Although…"

Tsunade raised an eyebrow when he paused. "What is it?"

"Well, I can't say for sure, but… there's something oddly familiar about it."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm not sure," Jiraiya admitted. "I'll have to look through some books to make sure." As if on cue, the intercom on Tsunade's desk buzzed.

The Hokage pressed down on a button on the intercom and asked, "What is it?"

"Lady Hokage," the person on the other end replied, "there's someone here that would like to speak with you and Master Jiraiya. She says it's urgent."

Tsunade sighed. She didn't have time for this. "I'm busy at the moment. Can she wait?"

"She says she knows who's responsible for the disappearance of Naruto Uzumaki." Jiraiya and Tsunade's eyes widened in shock.

"Send her up," Tsunade said rather forcefully. Jiraiya sat in a chair, tapping his foot on the floor impatiently. After a minute, there was a knock on the door. "Enter."

The door opened, and in stepped a young woman with platinum blonde hair tied in a braid that hung over her right shoulder. Her eyes were sea-green and tranquil, and she wore a pure white dress that could only have been a ball gown. She bowed respectfully to the two Sannin.

"Hello, Lady Tsunade, Master Jiraiya," she said in a calm, serene voice. "It is an honor to be in your presence. I am most humbled."

"Cut the formalities," Tsunade said seriously. "Just tell us who you are and what you know."

The woman nodded. "I understand your haste, Lady Tsunade, so I shall not waste any of your time. My name is Wander. I believe that it is my brother who is responsible for the disappearance of the Uzumaki boy."

-o-

Naruto eyed the metal arm that was displayed to him. He had to admit, it looked pretty damn awesome. He thought that having a robot arm could possibly make even cooler than he already was.

"All right!" he said with a determined grin. "I'll take this one!"

"You sure?" Winry asked as the old man Dominic loomed over her shoulder, judging her workmanship. "I think I can do better."

"You've already done enough to help," Naruto assured her with a thumbs-up. "This one looks perfect for me!"

"All right, if you're sure." Winry took the automail right arm, made some final tweaks to it, and set it on Naruto's stump. "I'm going to connect the nerves now. It's going to hurt. A lot."

"I can vouch for that," Ed pointed out.

"Me, too," the dark-skinned girl, Paninya, chimed in as well.

"Ah, come on, how bad can it be?" the blonde shinobi asked with that confident smirk of his. He was then answered when Winry connected the nerves.

Over at East Command, Mustang sat up, apparently perturbed. "Something wrong, Colonel?" Hawkeye asked curiously.

"I must be hearing things," the colonel replied. "I could've sworn I heard someone screaming in sheer agony just now." He shrugged and returned to his paperwork.

-o-

Serenitas had just finished drawing another alchemical circle. This would be the first of the two connection points between the two universes. Once he crosses over to the other dimension, he can draw the same circle there and complete the link. He would be just one step closer to opening the Gates. One step closer to ultimate peace.

He already knew who the next sacrifices would need to be. He needed the eight beings called the Homunculi. They would complete the ritual totally. He knew already that someone would foolishly and selfishly try to stop him, but when that time came, he would be ready for whoever confronted him. No one can stand in the way of true harmony.


	6. Chapter 6

Naruto bent the elbow of his new automail arm. It matched the size of his original arm well, but he would really have to get use to the extra weight. He continued flexing for several seconds, then threw a punch with it. He threw a few more punches, then smirked. "I think I've got this," he said confidently.

"Care to put that to the test?" Ed asked. He, Al, and Winry had been watching Naruto exercise his new arm, and the Fullmetal Alchemist was already feeling pretty eager to spar with him.

"Hang on," Naruto said with his trademark foxlike grin. "I wanna try something really quick." He made cross-like sign with his middle and index fingers and took a deep breath. "Here goes. Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

To the surprise of the three Amestrian teens, the blond was suddenly surrounded by a massive cloud of smoke. They shielded their eyes from the explosion, except for Al, who didn't have anything to shield. When the smoke cleared, their eyes widened (the lights the served as Al's substitute eyes glowed brighter). Before them stood not one, but hundreds of Narutos. Ed's jaw practically slammed into the dirt.

"WHAT THE HELL!?" he shouted in complete disbelief. "WHERE DID ALL THOSE GUYS COME FROM!?"

"I made them!" the original Naruto proclaimed proudly. "It looks like my new arm was copied, too! Man, that's awesome!"

"They must be illusions," Ed stated as he went up and started poking each clone. His face slowly contorted into one of utter shock. "Th-they're s-solid…"

"B-but that's impossible," Al said, completely dumbfounded. He and Ed then stared at Naruto suspiciously. "WHERE IS IT!?" they suddenly shouted in unison.

Naruto backed up. "Uh… where's what?"

"The Philosopher's Stone, dumbass!" Ed exclaimed. "Hand it over!"

The blond shinobi held his hands up in a defensive pose. "I'm sorry guys, but I don't even know what the Philosopher's Stone is."

"That's a load of bull!" Ed shouted. "Hand it over now, and we won't have to get rough with you!"

_BAM!_

Ed was now sprawled out on the ground, his head bleeding. Winry stood in front of Naruto, holding a partially bloody wrench and bowing apologetically. "I'm really sorry about that. Ed tends to get excited."

"That's… okay," Naruto said as he made a mental note to never piss off one Winry Rockbell. "So, what's the Philosopher's Stone?"

"It's an item used for alchemy," Al explained. "With it, you can completely ignore the Law of Equivalent Exchange and create things out of nothing. We thought that you might have it, because you created all of these solid copies of yourself." Al motioned to the clones.

"Oh," Naruto said, still not quite getting it. "Well, sorry, but these clones were all created from my own chakra, not some magic rock." He dispelled all the clones as Ed sat back up.

"The Philosopher's Stone isn't magic, genius," he said indignantly. "And what's chakra?"

"Hmm?" Naruto thought about that for about a minute. "Well, I don't really know how to explain it. It's basically like life energy or something. You take your own physical energies, and mix them in with spiritual energies. That creates chakra, which you can use for different things, like the Shadow Clone Jutsu that I just did."

"Huh." Ed nodded. He didn't really understand, but it sounded interesting. It sounded like it worked in a way similar to alchemy, except it took internal energy rather than outside sources. "So, what else can you do with it?"

Naruto smirked mischievously. "I'm glad you asked!" He went through three hand signs and then said, "Transform!" He was enveloped in a cloud of smoke. The cloud soon dissipated, revealing a second Edward Elric.

"What the?" Ed said in awe.

The second Edward smirked and said, "Pretty cool, huh? It's called the Transformation Jutsu. It can be used to take on just about any form you can think of!"

"Can you teach us to do that?" Al inquired, highly intrigued in the probability.

Ed 2 frowned and crossed him, then poofed back into the form of Naruto Uzumaki. "Sorry, guys, but I'm not really the type who can teach others. Besides, I don't really know how it works. I just kinda do it. And besides that, it takes months, sometimes even years of training to really get it down."

"Oh," Al said in a disappointed voice.

Naruto cocked his head at the armored boy. "I've been wondering about something." The Elrics and Winry looked at Naruto curiously. "Why does Al where all that armor all the time? For that matter, if he's the younger brother then shouldn't he be shorter than Ed?"

The Amestrian trio suddenly began sweating bullets. "Er…" Ed said, trying to think of an excuse.

"Ed and I…" Al said, also trying to think of a solution.

"They were in a terrible accident," Winry stepped in. "Ed lost his arm and leg, and Al lost nearly his whole body." It wasn't a total lie, and it wasn't the whole truth. Ed and Al looked to her gratefully, and she gave them a kind smile in return.

"Oh, I get it," Naruto said, making an "o" with his mouth. "So, that's like a full-body automail?"

"Er, yeah," Al replied. There was an awkward silence for several seconds. Nobody really looked like they even wanted to say anything.

"So, this Philosopher's Stone," Naruto suddenly said. "You guys are looking for it?"

"Yeah," Ed confirmed with a nod. "We're hoping that it'll be able to restore our bodies back to normal." Naruto cocked his head to the side, then looked down at his automail arm.

"Hey, do you think I could tag along on your search?" he asked suddenly.

"What?" Ed looked at the other blond. He thought about for a few seconds. "I don't know. How do we know that we can trust you?"

"If I were a threat, you'd probably be dead by now," Naruto deadpanned.

Winry chuckled a little nervously. "He does make a good point, Ed."

The elder Elric brother sighed and said, "Fine, you can come along. Just don't do anything stupid."

"All right!" Naruto shouted optimistically. "Now, where do we go from here?"

-o-

Tsunade and Jiraiya stared wide-eyed at the young woman named Wander. She had just explained what her brother's ultimate plot was about. Neither could believe what they had just heard.

"This Serenitas," Jiraiya said, a serious look in his eyes. "He's insane. Countless innocent lives will be lost. Doesn't he realize that?"

Wander nodded grimly. "He does. He believes that it will be worth the sacrifice."

Tsunade held a look of contempt on her face. "He has to be stopped before it's too late. Do you know where he is now?" Wander shook her head sadly. "Damn," the Fifth Hokage muttered under her breath. "Do you at least know of a way for us to get to Naruto?"

"Yes," Wander answered, "but once the portal is open, it will only remain so for a few minutes. I suggest picking the best team possible for this responsibility. The world where Naruto is now is in much strife. It is ruled in secret by a man who calls himself 'Father.' Only the best and most familiar of your shinobi."

"Why familiar?" Jiraiya inquired.

"It is very likely that Naruto's memory has become shot," Wander explained calmly. "He may only trust those that he most easily recognizes." Tsunade and Jiraiya nodded at that, and Wander nodded back. "I shall go and prepare to open the portal. Take your time choosing the proper team, but remember that time is short." With that, Wander left them to select the shinobi that would go to find Naruto.

As she walked down the hall of the Hokage tower, she became lost in thought. Serenitas had become dark and twisted. He had to be stopped. She knew this better than anyone. But still…

_Serenitas,_ she thought sorrowfully as she exited the building. _What happened to you?_


	7. Chapter 7

Naruto stared out the window of the train as everything zoomed by, completely in awe of the locomotive that he and the Elrics were onboard. He had never even heard of trains back at the Leaf Village. This Amestris place really did have some amazing stuff.

"Man, this thing is going fast!" he exclaimed with a grin, getting more than a few odd looks from the other passengers. Ed chuckled nervously at the unwanted attention.

"Settle down, Naruto," Alphonse advised the young shinobi. "We don't want to attract too much attention to ourselves."

"Sorry," Naruto said with a sheepish grin as he scratched. He sat back in his seat, still looking out the window. "So, where are we going again?"

"Dublith," Ed answered. "Al and I are going to see our old alchemy teacher so that we can ask if she knows anything about the Philosopher's Stone." The young alchemist then shuddered for no apparent reason. "But she'll most likely kill us before we have chance to ask her anything." Al nodded his agreement.

Naruto cocked his head to one side, a confused look on his face. "Why would your teacher kill you?"

"Let's just say that subtlety isn't exactly her strong point," Al said with a shiver of his own, resulting slightly echoed clanking noises. This only confused Naruto further, but he decided not to pry too much into it. The Elrics might just be exaggerating a little.

-o-

In the outskirts of Dublith, wind blew in the fields, gently brushing the grass. Birds flew by, chirping blissfully. Suddenly, in a place where no one in town could see, the air began to crackle and spark. A large orb of green light formed, then dissipated, revealing a group of shinobi. Teams 7, 8 (minus Kurenai), and 10, along with Guy's team and the mysterious girl called Wander stood together in the field.

"Well, it worked," Kakashi stated. He looked over in the direction of the town. "At least we're near civilization."

"Yes, I agree, Kakashi," Guy said with a huge grin on his face. "We'll start our search for our missing comrade here. The power of youth will aid us tremendously!"

"Yes!" Lee exclaimed excitedly. "We will find Naruto and bring him back to the village in no time!" He quickly received a whack on the head from Tenten, who chided him to calm to down.

"We will need to first investigate the town over there," Wander recommended. She walked a few feet ahead, taking lead of the group of shinobi. "If I am not mistaken, we are to enter Dublith." She closed her eyes for a few moments, as if she were trying to sense something. "I can feel the presence of multiple powerful energies within the town. They are unfamiliar personally, but one feels like it may be a homunculus."

"Homunculus?" Hinata inquired.

"Artificial humans created through the use of alchemy," Wander explained coolly. "There are currently eight in total in this world, all of them dangerous."

Kakashi nodded. "Understood." He then turned to face his fellow ninja. "You heard the lady. We'll have to be careful about how we handle this. Try not to stand out too much." He sent a glare at his rival and his protégé. "That includes the two of you especially."

"Don't worry, Kakashi," Guy said with a thumbs-up, his teeth glinting in the sunlight. "Lee and I will blend in like a tree in a forest! Even you won't notice us!"

The Copy Ninja sighed. He then returned his attention to the town ahead. "We'll split up from here. However, each team will have to stick with its own members. We don't know the area, so be careful. Wander will be with Team Kakashi. If you find Naruto, or acquire anything that might lead us to him, contact me immediately." Each of the gathered ninja nodded in understanding of Kakashi's orders. "All right. Scatter!"

All the ninja dashed off, each team heading in different directions within the town of Dublith. They had to find Naruto before it was too late.

-o-

Naruto suddenly sneezed as he followed Ed and Al to their teacher's house. He wiped his nose and muttered, "I hope I'm not catching something."

Dublith seemed to be a thriving town, with people milling about, going on with their daily lives. Nobody seemed to pay him any mind. He was just some kid who appeared to be travelling with another kid and a huge guy in a suit of armor. He should've felt relieved, but it was more unnerving than anything else. Having grown up hated and scorned by his fellow villagers, he had come to accept to some degree that that was just how it was, that he was hated. Whenever he was somewhere new, however, and shown kindness, it always set him on edge. He had been deceived before as a child, and wasn't eager to be betrayed again anytime soon.

"We're here," Ed announced. Naruto stopped walking and examined the building before him. They were standing in front of a large butcher shop. Al walked up to the door and knocked on the door, and the three waited for a few moments.

_BOOM. BOOM. BOOM. BOOM._

Naruto gulped at the sound of those massive footsteps. What could be so huge that just its feet could make explosions? Soon enough, he was answered when the door was opened by the world's hugest man. The guy was easily at least seven feet tall, and had a wide, muscled body that looked like it could snap a lesser man in half. The man had a scruffy beard and mustache on his chin, with dark, combed hair. His eyes held an intimidating glare that sent chills down Naruto's spine. In his massive right hand, the man held a butcher's knife, and wore a bloody apron over his dark green shirt and dark pants.

"Edward," the man said in a deep baritone. He patted the young alchemist on the head. "You've grown a little."

"Thanks," Ed replied with a mix of anger and fear in his voice. Naruto could easily see where he was coming from.

"Um… Sig?" Al said, catching the large man's attention. Al was still taller than Sig, but the man came terrifyingly close. "It's me, Alphonse."

Sig raised an eyebrow at the armored boy… then patted his head as well. "You've grown considerably," he said in an unbelievably nonchalant tone.

Al seemed just as taken aback by Sig's reaction as Naruto and Ed. _That's the first time anyone's patted me on the head since I got this body,_ he thought.

Sig faced Naruto with a raised eyebrow. "And who's this?"

"He's our new traveling buddy," Ed answered, pointing his thumb at Naruto, who waved somewhat nervously. "We met him in Rush Valley, and he decided to tag along with us."

"And why's that exactly?" Sig inquired.

"That's… uh… private," Naruto replied as he unconsciously fingered his new automail arm.

Sig gave Naruto an analytical look, but soon nodded. "All right then. I'm guessing you boys are here to see Izumi?" Ed and Al both nodded affirmatively. "I'll go get her then. Wait here." The huge man went back inside, closing the door behind him.

The three teens waited for several moments, until the door opened slowly. Out of nowhere, a sandal-clad foot slammed into Ed's face, sending the blond flying backwards into a building, where and Edward Elric-shaped dent was left. Naruto gawked at that, then at the dark-haired woman who had kicked the boy away. Her hair was tied in a wild ponytail, and she wore a white buttoned shirt and black pants. She had an irritated scowl on her face.

"Edward and Alphonse Elric!" she shouted, shocking the brothers (and Naruto) to attention. "You two have some nerve coming back here you little-!" Her rant was interrupted when she suddenly coughed out blood. Naruto nearly shrieked at the sight and the woman's lack of reaction to the occurrence. Sig walked up from behind Izumi and wiped her mouth with a paper towel, all while keeping a neutral expression on his face, as though he were used to this kind of thing happening. Izumi thanked Sig and immediately returned to screaming at the Elric brothers.

-o-

Kiba sniffed the air as he and Akamaru stood atop a building in Dublith, trying to see if they could find Naruto's scent. They unfortunately had no such luck. Shino had sent out his bugs to track Naruto's chakra, and Hinata was searching each building for the blond shinobi.

"He's not here either," Hinata said, sounding a little dejected.

"Don't worry, Hinata," Kiba assured her. "We'll find him. And when we do, I'm gonna slug him for making us all worry about him." Shino nodded his agreement.

A small beetle buzzed over to the hooded ninja and landed on his finger. "What did you find?" he asked the bug.

After a few seconds, Kiba asked, "Well?"

"This one caught wind of Naruto's chakra," Shino answered, much to Hinata and Kiba's relief. "However, there seems to be something slightly different about it. I can't tell what's different about it exactly, but it's very subtle, almost unnoticeable."

"All right then," Kiba said with a nod. "I'll go inform Kakashi. You two go on ahead and see if you can find Naruto."

"Right," Shino and Hinata both said together. Team 8 then scattered, with Kiba and Akamaru going to find Kakashi, and Hinata and Shino going to track down Naruto.

_Naruto,_ Hinata thought worriedly. _I hope you're safe._

-o-

Serenitas walked through the passage that led to the homunculi's base. He stepped calmly and eerily through puddles of blood that seeped from the lethal wounds in the bodies of the dozens of chimera that had foolishly tried to attack him.

"Insipid creatures," he muttered as his feet stepped out of the pools of red. "There is no being that will stop me. All creatures can try. All shall fail."

Eventually, the silver-haired man entered the chamber that the homunculus called "Father" called his home. Said homunculus was, as Serenitas had expected, sitting in his metal throne. The artificial human gave Serenitas a glare.

"Who are you?" he asked. "And why are you here?"

Serenitas gave a humble bow. "I am Serenitas, and I am here to strike a deal with you."

"What sort of deal?"

"Tell me, sir, have you ever heard of ninjutsu?"


	8. Chapter 8

Naruto sat at the table with his arms crossed, trying not to look nervous. Izumi had been more frightening than he had first thought. He had originally figured that Ed and Al were just exaggerating, but he quickly learned that she was every bit as terrifying as that creepy snake person from the Forest of Death that he and his team had run into three years ago. And that was really saying something.

"So, Ed, Al," Izumi started as she reclined in her seat at the table, "who's the new guy? Friend of yours?"

"I'm Naruto Uzu-" Naruto started before Izumi interrupted him with a terrifying glare.

"Was I talking to you?" she asked sinisterly. Naruto immediately shut himself up. Izumi returned her attention to Ed and Al and repeated her original question.

"He's Naruto Uzumaki," Ed answered. "We found him in Rush Valley a week back. He apparently lost his arm in an accident of some kind. His memory also seems to be in a haze."

"That so?" Izumi asked, this time looking at Naruto, who nodded.

"I know where I'm from, and I can remember some names and faces," he began to explain, "but I can't think of the name of my home, and I can't put any of the names and faces together. All I can really say is that I'm from a society that's way different than Amestris."

"Partial amnesia, eh?" the dark-haired woman said with her hand on her chin. She was clearly thinking about where Naruto could've been from.

"And that's not even the craziest part," Al said. "Naruto can make copies of himself out of nothing! And they're all completely solid!"

Izumi immediately quit her pondering and gave the three a skeptical look. Did they really expect her to believe that? She chuckled. "Well, maybe he can give a demonstration then. What do you say, kid?"

"Sure," Naruto said with a cocky grin as he stood from his seat. He made a cross-like shape with his middle and index fingers. "Shadow Clone Jutsu!" With a pop and a cloud of white smoke, a second Naruto appeared. Izumi didn't look at all impressed, still thinking it was just smoke and mirrors. She got up and punched both Narutos in their faces. The clone disappeared, and Naruto's head burrowed into the wall. Izumi just stared at the fist that had made contact with the clone, her eyes wide in disbelief.

"It was solid," she said. "It was like I actually hit someone." She then stared at Naruto's unconscious form as Ed and Al attempted to yank him out of the wall. If that boy could create solid doppelgangers of himself, then what else could he be capable of? What was this boy exactly?

It was then that Sig entered the room. "Izumi, there are two kids out front looking for a blond kid with blue eyes and weird marks on his cheeks. I think they're here looking for Naruto."

"That so?" Izumi said. "Let them in. If they know Naruto, they may be able to answer some questions that I've got about him." Sig nodded and left the room to get the new visitors. Izumi would have her answers one way or another.

-o-

Serenitas sighed as he stood from the ninjutsu seal upon the ground, then examined all the piles of dust that were once the homunculi. It was a shame that Greed the Avaricious could not be brought here. His Philosopher's Stone would have been useful as well as the other seven. Regardless, it did not hinder his plans in the least. He was already ahead of schedule.

He turned his attention to the body of Fuhrer King Bradley, the one homunculus who had once been human. Serenitas was disgusted by this. The Father homunculus had destroyed a young man's life and turned him into a near mindless servant.

"Revolting," he said to himself. "This is why I must open the Gates." Yes. The Gates had to be opened. His vision for ultimate peace must be fulfilled. All the armies of both the two worlds could stand against him, and he would still press onward.

The Gates of Serenity will lead to the peace that he sought.

-o-

"Is he all right?" a girl's voice asked. Naruto could only vaguely recognize it. It sounded very familiar, but at the same time, it was new to him.

"He'll be fine," replied the voice of Izumi Curtis. "I didn't slug him too hard. He should wake up any second now."

"You know how you can go overboard, Izumi," said the voice of Sig, Izumi's giant of a husband.

"Perhaps we should shake him?" said a stoic voice that was also vaguely familiar to the blond shinobi.

"Hold on, he's coming to," Edward's voice stated. Naruto groaned as he sat up in the couch that he was apparently laid out on. He rubbed his head with his automail arm and looked around. Sitting on a small chair in front of the couch was a girl about his age. She had long dark hair and fair skin. Her eyes were pale and didn't appear to have pupils, but she could apparently see just fine.

Standing over the girl's shoulder was guy about the same age, but that was difficult to discern, considering he had a jacket with a high collar and a coat with his hood up. He also wore tinted goggles so that no one would be able to see his eyes. It was impossible to read his face with that outfit on.

"N-Naruto!" the girl stuttered happily. "I-I'm so happy that you're okay!"

"Er, thanks," Naruto replied with a confused look on his face. "Sorry, but what's your name?"

"W-what?" the girl said dejectedly. "You don't remember us?"

"It's not that I don't remember," Naruto stated. "I remember you and everyone else. I just can't put any of the names in my head to your face."

"Wander told us that things might be like that," the guy with the sunglasses said in a monotone. "I'm Shino, and she's Hinata. Do you remember?"

Naruto crossed his arms and cocked his head to the right. "Yeah, that sounds about right. But can I ask who Wander is?"

"She's a woman who appeared in the village the day after you disappeared," Hinata explained. "She's a bit of a mystery, but she seems trustworthy enough. She helped us come to this world in order to find you."

"Wait, 'world'?" Ed asked with a raised eyebrow. Hinata nodded as Shino began to explain.

"We are from another world," he said. "An 'alternate universe' if you will. A man by the name of Serenitas appears to be plotting something massive that involves both our two worlds. We haven't been told what his plan is yet, but we have a strong feeling that Naruto may be somehow required for it to work."

Izumi laughed. "Now that's a riot! You think we're all dumb enough to believe that? If you're from another universe, then I'm the Fuhrer!"

"A pleasure to meet you then, Madam Fuhrer," a relaxed voice said from the window. All eyes turned to see a silver-haired man with a mask over most of his face and a headband over his left eye. His right eye was the only part of his face that was visible. He wore a dark green vest with holsters upon the chest. "I'm afraid what Shino said is actually quite true."

"And just who the hell are you!?" Izumi shouted.

"Kakashi Hatake," the man responded calmly with a somewhat happy look. His expression quickly went serious. "I went ahead of the others when Kiba returned. Wander told me to tell Naruto and two young men called the 'Elric brothers' about what Serenitas is planning."

"We're the Elric brothers," Ed stated pointing to himself and Al. Kakashi nodded.

"Good," he said. "Now listen. What I'm about to say might shock you. Serenitas plans to open something called the 'Gates of Serenity.'"

"So what?" Naruto said. "What's the big deal about a fancy door?"

"The Gates lead to an immense reservoir of godlike power," Kakashi explained. "I order to open them, a sacrifice must be made. I believe you alchemists might call it 'equivalent exchange.' Though the price doesn't seem very 'equivalent' if you ask me."

"What price are we talking about here?" Al inquired.

Kakashi stared at the group before him, then sighed. "In order to open the Gates… two universes must be destroyed."


	9. Chapter 9

Sasuke sat in a meditative pose, a thousand thoughts swirling through his head. He had just recently learned that Itachi and the rest of the Akatsuki had all been killed off by some unknown assailant. This alone would normally drive him into a rage, since he would no longer be able to have his revenge against his elder brother. But what made it worse was that there was no apparent sign of struggle. No blood, no battle damage, there wasn't even a drop of poison in their systems. It seemed as though they had all simply dropped dead in one of their hideouts.

_Dammit._

Itachi was dead now. His one goal in life was taken from him. He hated that. He hated all of it. He hated Itachi. He hated the one who killed Itachi. He hated everyone associated with that one person.

_Dammit!_

He simply hated. All of them.

"DAMMIT!" he screamed as he slammed his fist into the ground, cutting his knuckles open and drawing his own blood. He no longer had a purpose to drive him onward. He had wasted his entire life, abandoned his home and his friends, and practically sold himself to the Leaf Village's most dangerous enemy. He had destroyed his own life to gain the power necessary to kill Itachi… and it was all for nothing.

"Someone seems upset," said the familiar voice of Kabuto Yakushi. Sasuke faced the silver-haired man with obvious contempt, to which Kabuto chuckled. "Your glare is so cold. Honestly, that attitude of yours will give you an ulcer someday. Why don't you try smiling for once?"

"I'm not in the mood to hear you talk, Kabuto," Sasuke said in a warning tone. Again, Kabuto simply chuckled. Sasuke narrowed his eyes at the man. Something didn't seem quite right. "What do you want?"

"Just checking up on you. I assumed that the news of your brother's death would be pretty hard on you."

Sasuke glared at him silently for a moment. "One more question: who are you?"

"Whatever could you mean, Sasuke?" 'Kabuto' asked, feigning offense.

"The real Kabuto wouldn't bother checking up on me," Sasuke explained, his hand on the hilt of his sword. "He's always either in one of his labs or kissing Orochimaru's ass."

'Kabuto' looked at Sasuke with a somewhat surprised expression. There was a momentary silence, both shinobi eyeing each other warily… until Kabuto suddenly broke out into a fit of mad laughter, catching Sasuke completely off guard. "My, my, you certainly are a quick wit, aren't you?"

The fake's voice threw him off as well. It was a completely different tone and pitch, and it sounded almost like he was overjoyed to have been discovered. "Who are you?" Sasuke asked again.

"Oh, why ruin the fun so soon?" the impostor asked with a mad grin. "Don't worry, Sasuke-boy. You'll learn who I am soon enough. Any who! I can tell you who killed Itachi, and I can take you to him as well."

Sasuke's eyes widened at this revelation. "Who is it? Where is he?"

"Trust me," the man replied with chaotic glint in his eye, "you'll know who it is. I'll send you there now. Don't forget to talk to your dear friend Naruto about this!" Before Sasuke could respond, the stranger clapped his hands, blinding the Uchiha with a bright flash of light. When the light faded, Sasuke was gone. The impostor grinned to himself, chuckling darkly. Everything was going exactly as planned. "Hmm. Marvelous."

-o-

The entire group had managed to get together in Izumi's backyard, something the lady alchemist wasn't exactly thrilled about, but tolerated all the same. The ninja were all excited to have Naruto back again (except for Shino, who settled for a welcoming nod), but the fact that the blond jinchuriki could just barely remember any of them killed the mood somewhat. Guy and Lee were hit especially hard by that – they had always been told that they were very memorable people.

Sakura was happy to see Naruto again… and slammed a fist into his face not a minute later. Izumi had laughed at that and told the pink-haired girl that they were going to get along nicely. Later, Sai decided to give Ed and Al nicknames – Shorty and Tin Man. Needless to say, Ed wasn't exactly thrilled about this.

Wander, the mysterious girl who claimed to be Serenitas's sister, sat against a nearby tree, watching the group with a small smile. All the shinobi seemed thrilled to have their comrade back, which she was happy for. She looked down at the ground, observing a small white wildflower. She truly wished she could share such a moment with her brother. But she knew that that would likely never happen. Serenitas had to be stopped by any means necessary.

"Ms. Wander," said the voice of Kakashi Hatake, bringing her out of her momentary trance. "Since we're all here, we would like for you to explain why Serenitas wants to destroy our two universes. Would you mind?"

She nodded solemnly. "Very well. All of you, please, sit. This may be a very long story." The shinobi and alchemists nodded and sat upon the ground, all of them paying close attention to her. She took a deep breath. "First, my brother and I not from either of your worlds."

"What?" they all asked with wide eyes.

"Are you saying that you're not human?" Shikamaru inquired with clear surprise.

"Well… yes and no," Wander replied. She looked as though she was having trouble finding the right answer. "You see, my brother and I come from a dimension that is like a mix between your two realms. It is a world both ninjutsu and alchemy exist side by side, where two cultures, one of east and one of west, are molded together as one. But…"

"But what?" Ed asked.

Wander hesitated to answer. "Our world is… gone."

Naruto cocked his head to the side in confusion. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Wander froze slightly. "Serenitas and I… we are all that is left of our people. Our world was totally destroyed."

"Y-your whole planet?" Hinata thought aloud.

"No. Our entire _universe_. Our friends, our family, our home. All of it. Gone. It all happened in a single day, an apocalypse brought on by some entity whose identity eludes me to this day."

"It must've been some kind of demon," Kakashi theorized.

"No," Wander stated. "It was not a demon. It was a god."


	10. Chapter 10

**_Location: Homeworld of Serenitas and Wander_**

**_Time: Five years prior to current events_**

The sun shone brightly upon the city, which gleamed beautifully in the light, making it reminiscent of a heavenly paradise. The people went about their daily lives in the peaceful world. There was little conflict in the world for them to worry about, and what strife there was, was simply and quickly dealt with.

On the roof of one of the many skyscrapers, Serenitas stood overlooking his home. He loved watching the city at this time of day. Unless it was storming out, the metropolis was always a sight to behold, even to one who had already seen it countless times before. His mixed eyes were full of happiness.

"Brother," called the voice of his younger sister. He turned to face her. By her side was a dark-haired woman with clear blue eyes wearing a snow-white dress and holding a small bundle in her arms. His wife Cora and their daughter Felicia. "Must you spend all your free time up here all by yourself?"

"You know being all alone like this is not healthy, my love," Cora said as she approached him, the newborn child in her arms yawning audibly. "Your daughter misses you when you go off like this."

He smiled warmly at them. "Forgive me, Wander, Cora," he said. "I sometimes forget about my own life." He gently took his young daughter from his wife's hands. "I especially hope that you can forgive your silly-minded father, Felicia." The baby girl giggled at the silver-haired man who held her carefully. Serenitas smiled at this. He doubted his life could ever be better than what he had now.

Suddenly, there was an explosion in the distance behind them. They turned and saw smoke rising into the sky, an obvious sign that there was a fire happening in the center of the city. Serenitas's eyes went wide. He handed his daughter back to his wife and said, "I'll go see what happened. You stay here."

"But, Serenitas-!" Before anyone could argue, he had already blown through a number of hand signs for a teleportation technique and vanished within a miniature whirlwind of leaves. Cora turned to Wander, who gave the elder woman a reassuring smile.

"Don't worry, Cora," she said in an unconcerned tone. "It's probably nothing. I'm sure he can handle it just fine."

Cora didn't look quite as sure. "I certainly hope so."

-o-

Serenitas stared in horror at what he was seeing. There were blazing bodies scattered all over the area, which was still up in flames. He could practically hear the sound of flesh of burning off of bone. The smell was absolutely horrendous, like a sewer that had been set aflame. It was horrible. And to make it worse, there were also the bodies of what appeared to be security enforcers that had tried to help any survivors. They had been armed to the teeth, but whatever happened here must've gotten to them as well.

He heard mad laughter coming from just about everywhere and nowhere at once. He quickly searched the area with his eyes to find the source of that laughter. "Isn't it simply marvelous?" the laughing voice said gleefully.

"Show yourself!" Serenitas demanded.

"My, my, aren't we bossy!" the voice replied in a teasing tone. "Very well, my boy. Look behind you."

Serenitas did as he was told and turned to see a man in the most bizarre, mishmash outfit he had ever seen. It looked like a mix of a clown's attire and formal suit combined with casual wear. The colors were a random assortment that looked like they had simply been splashed on at the last minute. The man's hair was wild and uncouth, with half of it being black and the other half being white. His eyes were empty sockets that blazed with fire that was constantly changing color at random. "Who are you?" Serenitas inquired, barely able to fully take in the man's appearance.

"Oh, I don't want to get personal right now, Serenitas," the man said with a twisted grin, his choice of words making Serenitas's eyes widen slightly. "I did this specifically to get your attention, my boy!"

"What? Why? What do you want from me?"

The man grinned evilly. "I want to give you a reason to hate me. Won't that just be marvelous!?" With that said, he snapped his fingers, and out of nowhere… Cora, Wander, and baby Felicia appeared, each of them trapped within clear blue bubbles.

"What in the name of-!?" Serenitas shouted. "How did you-!?"

"I've been watching you and your family for some time now," the madman said with a sadistic grin. "I know just how to pull your strings." Again, he snapped his fingers. Serenitas suddenly felt himself floating. He could see that Wander was also rising up into the air.

"What!? What's happening!?" Wander shouted in panic.

"Serenitas!" Cora called out as she pounded against her bubble, their baby crying in hers.

"Cora! Felicia!" Serenitas glared at the evil man. "What are you doing!?"

"Imma kill me a universe, my boy!" the man called back almost casually. "You fun wherever you end up!" And with that, Serenitas and Wander shot up into the heavens at what was virtually light speed – or something faster. They suddenly stopped in space far beyond their home. They were both trapped in bubbles now, and all they could do was watch as what they could only assume to be their home planet… completely blew to pieces.

Their eyes were wide in horror at this. But it didn't stop there. They continued flying out farther into space, watching hopelessly as countless other planets suffered the same fate, untold numbers of lives vanishing in massive infernos.

Soon, for better or for worse, they lost consciousness.

-o-

Wander groaned as she sat up on what felt like grassy earth. She opened her eyes and looked around, not seeing anything that looked familiar to her. Perhaps it was just a bad dream that had gotten to her? I it was, it was horrifyingly realistic. She stood and looked around some more. She soon found an unconscious Serenitas lying on the ground next to her. She quickly knelt over him and shook him slightly. He moaned as he awakened, and stared at her with confused eyes.

"Wander?" he asked in a daze. "What happened? Where are we?" His eyes suddenly went wide in horror. "Where are Cora and Felicia!? Where are my family!?"

"I don't know," Wander admitted. "I'm not entirely certain of anything at all right now."

"Marvelous!" called the voice of that psychopath, who spontaneously appeared in front of them in a flash of red light. "Not knowing what's happening is half the fun of total universal annihilation! Don't you agree?"

"You!" Serenitas roared in clear outrage. "What have you done with my family!?"

The man frowned a little at that. "I thought I explained this to you already. I killed them, along with the rest of your entire universe. Not a single one of 'em left!" He laughed maniacally then. He was clearly insane.

Serenitas simply stared at him in shock. Was this true? Was his family gone? Was his home gone? "You… you're lying…"

The madman laughed even harder. "Oh, you're hilarious!" he said in complete amusement. "No, I'm not lying. I make it a point not to lie. It's quite rude to assume that I would."

Wander glared at the man. She opened her mouth to say something, but before she could, Serenitas said, "I will kill you…" He glared burning daggers at the grinning lunatic. "I swear that I will destroy you! And I will undo the damage that you have done!"

The man smirked at that. "Well, if you're so eager for revenge, then you should take a looksee at the Gates of Serenity. If you open them up, you might just be able to beat me! If you're willing to pay the price of two entire universes, that is!"

Wander's eyes went wide at this. "But-!" The man snapped his fingers and was gone in a flash of red. Their only means of answers gone, she looked at her elder brother. She noticed two things about him that frightened her now: his look of rage was gone, replaced by a cold, emotionless visage, and the look in his eyes… it was a glare of dangerous intent.

-o-

**_Location: Izumi Curtis's backyard, Dublith, Amestris_**

**_Time: Present day_**

"A few days afterwards," Wander said, "he disappeared. No doubt he was after information on the Gates of Serenity. It wasn't until recently that I was able to learn of what he was truly up to. And now it seems that he has found the Gates."

"But if he did," Ed spoke, "Then why wouldn't he open them right there?"

Wander sighed. "I can only assume that he needed to create a connection between these two universes. He has possibly already created that connection, but likely needs time to build up the strength that he needs to open the Gates."

"Then we'll just have to stop him before he can do that," Shikamaru chimed in. "Having our universes destroyed would be a real drag."

"Then let's go find him and kick his ass!" Kiba shouted with a confident grin on his face. Akamaru barked in complete agreement.

"Settle down there, kid," Izumi ordered. "Even if what this girl says really is true, we have no idea how to find this guy. For all we know, she might even be in on it."

"I understand your reluctance to trust me, Mrs. Curtis," Wander said, "but I believe that things may only grow worse and worse if you simply refuse to listen. I am not asking for your trust. I am asking only that you do whatever you all can to stop my brother. Even if it means… killing him."

Naruto stared at the young woman with wide eyes. She had a look in her eyes that he recognized all too well. It was the same look that he used to see every time he looked in a mirror. It was look of complete sorrow, a pain that no physical wound could ever compare to. He instantly knew what he was going to do. "We'll stop him, Wander," he said. "And we'll do it without having to kill him. That's a promise."

Wander stared at him. His eyes held a powerful fire behind them. She could tell that he was being completely honest with this promise of his. She smiled slightly. "Thank you, Naruto Uzumaki," she said. "But I-"

Suddenly, a powerful presence fell upon the entire group. It was an incredible force that felt like a planet had just fallen on them. "So," a voice spoke from above them, "this is where you have been hiding, Wander." All eyes looked above to see a silver-haired man standing upon a rooftop, looking down at them with cold, calculating blue and green eyes. "And I see you have brought together a small force to try and stop me. Quaint."

Wander's eyes went wide at the man standing above them. Seeing this, Alphonse asked, "Wander, is that…?"

She nodded. "That is him. Serenitas."

Serenitas lifted his arms and slowly pressed his palms together. "This will be over quickly," he said. "I will make your deaths as painless as possible."


End file.
